East Jordan district agrees on contract

EAST JORDAN — After nearly two years, teachers in the East Jordan Education Association, the district's new superintendent and the East Jordan board of education agreed upon a teachers contract.

The new contract covers a four-year period, beginning Sept. 1, 2010, when the teachers and administrators were first unable to come to an agreement over a contract.

The new contract includes a change in teachers' insurance to a health savings account, new from the Michigan Education Special Services Association, an organization that helps teachers obtain group health insurance. The new contract also includes a zero percent increase in salary for the teachers' 2012-2013 school year, and a one percent increase for the 2013-2014 school year.

The teachers will also earn an increase based on district-wide student number increases.

"Two years ago, one of the key issues was insurance," said Jon Hoover, who was recently hired as East Jordan's superintendent. "Then, a real sticking point came after the legislation in June 2011, when (the state) passed a law prohibiting four major subjects of bargaining."

Hoover worked with Mary Lieberman, UniServ director for the Michigan Education Association, in order to come up with a contract agreeable to both the teachers and the administration.

"Just from our standpoint, the association is thrilled that we reached an agreement both parties can agree with," said Lieberman. "We're looking forward to our community healing and moving forward and having a good school year."

The two as well as the board of education have been negotiating for a month, and, on Wednesday, came to the contract that the East Jordan teachers eventually agreed to during a special board meeting on Friday.

"It is a great day in East Jordan," said Hoover. "The last 30 days, as we worked with the board, we focused on the fact that we love our teachers and love all of our staff, and asked, what can we do to put our teachers in a fair position, give them a fair contract, which is good for the entirety of the school district."